Talking trash

Representatives of Greentree Solid Waste Authority and Lincoln County commissioners last week debated, criticized and complained about who should be responsible for covering a debt payment of about $38,500 a year because Alto Lakes Water and Sanitation District pulled out of the collection operation.

Greentree consultant Joe Lewandowski pointed out Greentree, a governmental entity composed of the county and several of its municipalities, expa_nded and bought equipment with loans on a guarantee of having an exclusive service area.

And Commissioner Kathryn Minter, who serves on the Greentree board, chided other commissioners for failing to listen to her warnings about the situation months in advance.

When the verbal arrows stopped flying, County Manager Nita Taylor stepped in and suggested that she work with Ingle to compile a complete picture of the authority's financial situation to bring back to commissioners for a more informed decision.

"I need a worse-case scenario," Powell said, not just for the next few months, but for five and 10 years into the future.

Lewandowski and Ingle said when the Alto district pulled out and took 25 percent of the authority's customers with it, about 1,117 accounts, the authority board adjusted its operational budget to cover the loss.

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Personnel, fuel and other expenses were cut, covering the financial gap, except for $38,000 a year in debt service. Each collection area, such as Carrizozo, Capitan or the unincorporated area of the county, is paying rates only to cover its operation, and the county would be responsible for making up Alto's debt portion, he said. Alto is not an incorporated community and the sanitation district did not sign any contracts binding it to the debt.

Five options

Ingle and the authority board proposed five options to generate the additional money for the debt service. The first was for a rate increase to county customers of about $1 per month, not including any consumer price index increases needed for normal operating costs.

Another option would be for the county to subsidize the debt service from other county revenues. The county also could ask representatives from the sanitation district to contribute toward the debt service, which was incurred in part to improve service to that area.

A fourth option is to find more operational and service cuts, or a combination of the four.

Capitan Mayor Sam Hammons said he was "dumbfounded," to hear Alto was not obligated for the debt. "It always was our understanding when the debt was incurred, it would be shared by all," he said. "To me, it looks like be a legal issue before it's over."

Minter reminded commissioners that each entity member passed a joint powers agreement and passed an ordinance when the authority was formed in 1991, making it mandatory that all garbage collection go to the authority. "The county also has an ordinance that all waste goes to authority," she said. "But we changed our ordinance in 2008, to allow the district (an exemption) in addition to the municipalities. At the time (because the emphasis was on water and sanitation), no one thought about that debt. That's why this all falls on the county system. The county was the only entity that allowed them to form."

Hammons, who also chairs the authority, sent the commission a letter months ago to keep commissioners alerted to what was happening, she said.

"As soon as (Alto) left, I let you know," Minter said. "We probably should have had them come to the county to negotiate. Initially, it was all about the new substation that was paid for, but they wanted the income even though it was paid off. We were only $1 off when talks fell though and that $1 was part of the debt."

Lease lag

She also defended the authority's lag in submitting proposals to the district in advance of a lease expiring in November, saying the issue coincided with the Little Bear Fire in June and the flooding aftermath when authority crews were busy trying to keep debris off roads and out of waterways.

Ingle said some district representatives have indicated "the door still is open," although a bid was accepted from Sierra Contracting to handle service.

Commissioners agreed they are not at the point of considering litigation over the debt and no one has formally asked district officials if they would consider accepting a portion of responsibility.

Powell said that should wait because "I don't think we have real number yet."

Numbers also bugged Doth.

"I'm really disappointed at this stage of game," he said. "What is before me makes no sense at all, no complete picture. (He's checked the meeting minutes) and the (commission) keeps asking for accounts payable. I'm disappointed because I never get a straight answer from you, Debra. I get the run around - bits and pieces of the truth and when the proverbial crap hits the fan, we are not more educated than before.

"I am not a (certified public accountant), but I can tell you this is not the full picture. I have no faith in your ability to lead this organization or to tell us the facts."

He's hearing different stories of what transpired between the authority and the sanitation district from each side, he said.

Ray Dean, Carrizozo representative on the authority, said he's attended monthly meetings for eight years and Greentree in his estimation is one of the finest authorities in New Mexico.

"The numbers back that (estimation) up, what we charge and the recycling," he said. "I'm sensing an adversary relationship between the county and the authority, and I don't think that serves us well. I've never met anyone who knows more about the garbage business than Joe and anyone who tried to make it work more than Debra. We can't change the past. They're doing what they can to make it work."

But Powell said it's hard to celebrate $4.5 million in debt and to explain to some customers why their rates are going up and not others.

Lewandowski said the county violated its contract with the authority when it allowed the district to branch out into garbage collection, "because we have sole and exclusive. You gave away 25 percent of the authority's revenues." The revenues for Greentree are generated through a county ordinance, he said. "You violated the (memorandum of understanding) by violating our sole rights. The authority took action on the debt based on a guarantee of that revenue to take care of the garbage," he said. The Alto district didn't do anything wrong. They did the same thing the village of Ruidoso did years ago, he said.

County Attorney Alan Morel said he wasn't with the county when the MOU was drafted and the county had no basis to stop Alto from forming a sanitation district.

Ingle said no matter how the situation evolved, "We have obligation to pay the debt."